The Tempest Epilogue

"Come in, come in," Prince Prospero howled, "to my abbey we go!" I saw the thousand mummers flood into the abbey, hoping to escape their fates. They tripped and slipped over the remains of the luckless as they pushed and shoved their way in. "Come in, come in," the prince cries again, "we mustn't wait a second!" They could not have been more thrilled to seek their freedom from their destiny. Yet, the luckless and I did not obtain this chance. The prince looked at us, the victims of fate, and looked back at the abbey. Back and forth, he looked and looked. Then he stared. Not at the abbey, not at the dead, but at me. My corpse. “Charlie,” Prospero whispered. He stared at me. He then looked back at the abbey, then back at me. He looked and looked.

After that, the prince finally looked away from me and entered the abbey.
The doors to the castellated abbey closed. I hear the prince lock the gates and return to his people. I'm sure Prospero felt secured and shielded from his future. I’m sure his people, his mummers, felt protected and sheltered from the outside, their destiny. Yet, these sluggish gates will not impede "The Red Death". It will not impede me.
"Fetch my people wine, play their music," Prospero commanded, "improvisators, tell your tales.

Buffoons, enthrall my beloved mummers." The party had commenced. I saw a thousand people, dancing, drinking, and jesting away without cessation like there wasn't a threatening entity attempting to crawl and sneak right behind them. Even the butlers and servants walked around and worked to death with beaming faces, for they assume they will not face death. But that’s when “it” happened. The chimes. The gigantic, monstrous, ebony clock at the end of the seven rooms. The seventh room. The cimmerian room with an isolated bloodshot light cutting in. The clocked chimed blatantly across the entire abbey. It chimed once, and the sound continued. It seemed as if the clock had a mind of its own and never wanted to cease. While it rang, the people froze completely. No one even blinked. “Why did they freeze,” I wandered, “why did everything become silent and mute?” It was as if the people were struck with fear and dismay that they just paused the whole party. The musicians stopped playing, the dancers stood in place, the jesters shut up for once and even the Prince paused in fear. Once the sound of the clock ceased, the people continued to dance, drink, and jest as if nothing happened. “Interesting,” I thought, “I believe I can use this as an

advantage.”
After that, I waited and waited for the clock to chime and chime again. For every hour that passed, the longer the chimes lasted. And the longer they chimed, the people froze significantly longer and longer. It was until right before midnight that I took my place in front of the gates. There, I waited for my signal.